Africa GreenCo

Africa GreenCo Launches Feasibility Study

Africa GreenCo is delighted to announce the publication of our Feasibility Study. The Feasibility Study describes the advantages for both the public and private sector of the establishment of an independently managed, creditworthy (investment grade) intermediary offtaker and power trading company interposed between renewable electricity generation companies on the one hand, and both state-owned and private sector offtakers on the other. When operational, it is envisaged that Africa GreenCo will become a member of the African regional power pools, aggregate offtaker credit risk and diversify both supply and demand side risks on a regional basis.

We should like to thank The Rockefeller Foundation for funding the work that has culminated in the publication of the Feasibility Study, which would not have been possible without their incredible support. The encouragement and support of regional bodies and initiatives that are tasked, either directly or indirectly, with the integration and scaling up of renewable energy, are integral to successful implementation of a regional creditworthy off-taker. We should like to acknowledge in particular the Regional Electricity Regulators Association of Southern Africa (RERA), the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP), the Association of Power Utilities of Africa (APUA), New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) secretariat. We should also like to thank the many individuals who have contributed their valuable time and feedback over the past year all of whom are acknowledged in our Feasibility Study.

With the ongoing support of The Rockefeller Foundation together with additional funding we have secured (details to be announced in our next newsletter) we are now moving towards implementation of the proposed creditworthy intermediary offtaker. During this next stage, we hope to cement existing relationships resulting from the Feasibility Study and establishing new relationships in order to ensure successful operationalization.

Mamadou BiteyeHead of Africa for The Rockefeller Foundation
“The Africa GreenCo Feasibility Study proves that, with the commitment of host Governments, the African and international development community and the private sector, Africa GreenCo can provide a structural solution to the underlying challenge of renewable energy project bankability. More importantly, Africa GreenCo will make financing the sector fundamentally more attractive and accessible to private sector sources of capital whilst at the same time reducing pressure on utilities as well as financial liabilities for sovereign governments. Accordingly, we expect Africa GreenCo to create a fundamental step-change in the structuring of international development support and the mobilization of private sector finance.”

Dr. Ibrahim Assane MayakiChief Executive Officer of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency
“NEPAD supports Africa GreenCo’s efforts to scale up access to Africa’s abundant renewable power sources at a regional level. Africa GreenCo complements the various initiatives that are associated with NEPAD’s program of work to harmonise regional and national policies on infrastructure, market development and trade, specifically NEPAD’s newly launched Renewable Energy Access Project (REAP) which aims to accelerate the development and implementation of renewable energy projects across Africa.”

Ana HajdukaCEO of Africa GreenCo
“DFIs and MFIs currently largely support renewable energy IPPs on a project-by-project basis, through a combination of grants, equity investment, debt finance (often on implicitly subsidised terms) and guarantees through which to cover sovereign credit risk. Africa GreenCo proposes to aggregate this willingness to take sovereign credit risk into a single intermediary off-taker allowing ‘open access’ to DFI credit support for private sector financiers of all generation projects contracting with Africa GreenCo, thereby enhancing transparency and creating a level playing field.”